A student from Kingston University, London got in touch with us a month or so ago. She is doing an MA in Sustainable Fashion Business Practices and has been tasked with supporting artisan groups for her term’s project. The particular artisans that she is supporting are master weavers from Uzbekistan - Craft Studio ikatUZ and she was keen for us to showcase some of their beautiful pieces. Of course I said yes! I love Ikat and I also think that it is important to support artisans where possible, to keep these incredible practices alive.

Both scarves that we are wearing have been woven by women living in rural areas of Uzbekistan in a conservative society where they are often not allowed to work outside of the home. The scarves are made from cotton and silk and there are 30-40 steps involved in weaving the ikat print!

Here is a little bit more about the collective responsible for weaving our scarves. They will have a transactional website coming soon but it has taken longer to get this up and running than they were initally expecting. For those of you that are interested, you can get in contact with the collective on Instagram - their handle is @Marikat.Uz.

This blue pinstriped over shirt is the perfect weight for the warmer months. It has the appearance of a jacket but it’s not as heavy as one, meaning you won’t get too hot. It could be worn on its own too. The bright blue is so fresh for Spring - it’s a colour that always looks good with white. A white t-shirt worn with it would be perfect. Speaking of which, I have included a selection of white t-shirts in the shopping edit this week. A friend texted me yesterday saying that all hers were looking a bit grey and worn, she needed to do a refresh and where did I go? It occurred to me that she might not be the only one in this boat….

I have to say, I like to have a selection of white t-shirts. Fitted ones to go under things like dresses or cardigans, boxy but waist length ones to loosely tuck in to high waisted jeans/trousers and long, over-sized t-shirts to wear with skirts or long shorts. I also tend to prefer a heavy weight cotton for the evening - I like a bit of structure - and a thinner texture for the day.

I really like the shape of both our chinos. Mum’s are a more traditional shape, mine are slightly more trend led. Eitherway, I think that if you have a navy and a beige pair for spring/summer, then you can’t go too wrong. Maybe you could throw in a cream/white pair for good measure! (or swap navy for black if that is your prefered colour).

Obviously here, mum and I are wearing more winter appropriate shoes (although NO SOCKS for me - gahh) but come summer, I will be living in Birkenstocks. I have my eye on these ones…. I’m absolutely loving pale yellow at the moment, anyone else?